Malaysian police have arrested six people, including four Bangladeshis, on suspicion of involvement in an online gaming scam or gambling operation.
Citing Kuala Muda district Police chief ACP Hanyan Ramlan, news outlet Malay Mail reported on Sunday that the suspects were believed to have been operating online gaming gambling activities since June from an abandoned hotel in Taman Lagenda in Kedah.
Police have not disclosed the names or identities of those arrested.
At a news conference at Kuala Muda district police headquarters on Sunday, Ramlan said a team from the IPD’s Commercial Crime Investigation Department (CCID) raided the site on the night of Oct 21 and arrested four Bangladeshi men aged between 20 and 53.
Ramlan said the operation primarily targeted Bangladeshis living in Malaysia.
The suspects were believed to have received around 2,700 Malaysian ringgit each per month for running the illegal operation.
Following preliminary investigations, police arrested two Malaysian men, aged 40 and 50, in a separate raid on Friday.
The two were identified as the owners of the abandoned hotel and the agents responsible for renting out the building.
Police said the syndicate used a website and WhatsApp to manage online game credit top-ups and communicate with customers.
When customers tried to withdraw money after winning, the process was deliberately delayed, according to police.
The system would sometimes display “pending withdrawal” indefinitely, leaving customers unable to collect their winnings.
Preliminary information indicates that about 17 customer accounts faced this problem on average each day, causing victims losses of around 2,000 ringgit daily, Ramlan said.
Police seized 17 mobile phones, computer components, 2,442 ringgit in cash and other equipment during the raids.
Police did not say how many customers were affected or whether further arrests were expected.